The leader of Wagner, a private military company, Yevgeny Prigozhin, has reportedly been killed in a plane crash.
According to reports, ten people were aboard the private jet that crashed in the north of Moscow, the capital of Russia.
The Russian Civil Aviation Authority reported that seven passengers and three crew members were aboard the Embraer aircraft, which was en route from Moscow to St. Petersburg.
Prigozhin aired his first video address since his aborted June mutiny just two days ago.
In the video, Prigozhin, who appeared to be in Africa, spoke about Russia making the continent “free”.
The video, which was shared on Telegram channels linked to the Wagner Group, was released amid ongoing fears of an impending war in Niger.
The Junta in Niger had approached Russia to assist in the event of a possible war with ECOWAS troops.
